Hi everyone, my name is Keylee and I live in Orlando, FL. My husband, Charles and I both work full time and our 18 month old fraternal boys Archer and Lucas attend daycare full time. We have been married a little over 6 years and our twins are our first and last babies. We tried to conceive for a little over four years before we were successful with a little reproductive help. I was just about to write that my pregnancy was complication free but then remembered I was in the hospital every other week from 20 weeks on. I’m sure most of you can relate. I carried my boys until 37 weeks and had an emergency C-section due to pre-eclampsia. On November 12th, 2013 we welcomed our small giants into this world. Archer is my big 34 pounds cuddle monster, he is very laid back, gives the best hugs and almost anything goes. He loves to talk and test our limits. Lucas is my slightly less big, 31 pounds mama’s boy. He is a ball of energy that never stops moving. He is so intelligent it amazes me. He is so content with just reading books or doing puzzles and prefers his personal space.
I try to have a laid back but structured approach when it comes to raising my boys. Every day is different, and as much as I want to say I am the boss they 100% run the show. I am choosing to show you what our typical Sunday looks like. I try to stay busy with them on the weeks. Most weekends my husband works so it is just me and the boys. This weekend we got lucky and he was off. Our weekdays are very structured and honestly wouldn’t be helpful for anyone trying to look ahead to see what their future may look like.
I will say that 18 months is my new favorite age. They are so much fun! They laugh, talk, play, tell me no constantly, and throw tantrums! At the same time they also now test my limits, it can be frustrating at times but I do my best to outsmart them to help me keep my sanity.
5:00 AM: I am awake, why? I have no clue; I lay in bed for 45 minutes on my phone until I start to hear them stir.
5:45 AM: I can hear Luke moving about and whining a bit. I decided to get up and make two sippy cups with about 5 oz. of milk each and set up their table and chairs in the living room. I also wake my husband up during this time.
6:00 AM: I go in their room, both are awake. I change Luke first; he is a little less patient so he normally goes first. He peed through his diaper a bit so I take off his pjs and put a t-shirt and new diaper on him. I put him on the ground and instruct him to go find daddy. Next I go to Archers crib to find him hiding under his blanket; he’s not a morning person like his brother. I repeat what I just did with Luke to Archer. While he goes to find dad I change out bed sheets real quick.
6:15 AM: Both are sitting on the couch and requesting a show. I ask if they want Frozen or Big Hero Six. I get a yes for both, so I decided, Frozen it is boys! While they watch this I am in the kitchen cooking breakfast.
6:45 AM: I made all of us a sausage, egg, and green onion scramble, the boys have toast and cheese with theirs in the living room, while watching Elsa belt of her best version of Let It Go.
7:15 AM: Both have declared they are done eating by throwing any leftover food on the floor. I collect plates, utensils, and uneaten food and bring it into the kitchen. Then I notice that Luke has pooped so I offer to change Archers diaper and suggest that my husband change Luke.
7:20 AM: I rally them into the kitchen and we wash hands, Luke first then Archer. Then they are back into their gated community to play for a bit. We have removed anything not baby friendly out of the living room and they have access to a toy room. We need to go grocery shopping so I go get dressed/ready while dad takes over for a bit. I can hear running, laughter, and fighting while I get ready.
8:00 AM: Dad and I switch off, I sit down and both follow suit. We read We’re Going on a Bear Hunt and Brown Bear Brown Bear while we wait. I also grab them some pants, and put their socks and shoes on. Luke proceeds to take them off. Twice.
8:15 AM: Everyone is ready so we head to the grocery store for some fruits and snacks.
8:20 AM: We arrive at the store, I get Archer out. My husband gets Luke out, but first he puts his socks and shoes back on. Archer and I look at the trucks and cars while we wait. Publix has cool double carts. Archer sits in it no problem; Luke pretends its lava and refuses so dad holds him. We promptly go to the bakery and ask for two cookies. Everyone feeds their kids cookies at 8 AM right? Luke finally agrees to sit in the cart, never thought I’d have to bribe an 18 month old.
9:00 AM: We survived our shopping trip and are back home. I ask if they want a snack, of course the answer is yes. I offer up some veggie chips; both run to their table and sit. I bring two bowls and two sippy cups of water. Then proceed to put away the groceries.
9:30 AM: We all move to the toy room for a bit. Archer is obsessed with standing on a toy chair and turning on and off the lights. So as he does it and I repeat on and off to him, he throws his hands in the air telling me something important. Luke is playing inside this green tent we have. He finds a book and brings it to my husband to read; they look at animals and say the sounds.
10:00 AM: I want to take them to play at the mall playground so nap time comes a little early today (normally 11:30). I ask both boys if they want to take a nap, of course they say no. I grab two sippys, fill them with milk and pretend to drink their milk. They come running after me into their room. I do a quick diaper change, and then they are in their cribs. I say goodnight and blow them kisses.
10:10 AM: They are both asleep.
10:00 AM - 1:00 PM: They slept for 3 hours today, it isn’t always like this. I do some light chores and we play Xbox in a silent house.
1:00 PM: Both boys are starting to wake up so I go in their room to get them. Luke first, he gets a new diaper, Archer not far behind gets the same.
1:20 PM: Off to the mall we go, it’s been in the mid 90’s here already so we use the mall playground since it’s indoors.
1:35 PM: We make it to the mall, both boys loaded into the stroller with little to no complaints. We head inside for some lunch. Normally I would get them chick-fil-a but its Sunday. So I settle for fries and corn dog bites. I enjoyed my 3 hours of relaxing a little too much and didn't have a properly packed diaper bag. So we didn’t have any table covers or sippy cups. They’re 18 months; the regular cup with a straw should be fine right?
1:50 PM: Both boys are finally eating lunch. Luke isn’t big on sharing so every time Archer turns his head he takes a few more pieces of his food. I tell him to give them back and he listens and scoots them back over. The water cups were a disaster, water was everywhere by the time we were done. My husband flagged down a worker and we help pick up the mess.
2:15 PM: We head down the elevator to the play area. We take their shoes off and bring them inside. Luke is a bit shy and stands in the corner until he gets a bit more comfortable. Archer starts exploring. He is fond of the slide but it makes me a nervous wreck. I jump up at least 10 times to help him down the slide. Luke starts exploring more at this point.
2:40 PM: There were quite a few bigger kids there, so we decide to call it quits and head home.
3:00 PM: We once again arrive home. Get the boys in the house and change diapers. This time Archer pooped. I volunteer to change Lucas. You get what I’m doing here right?
3:05 PM: While Archer is getting changed I fill their cups with water and put out a snack for them. Lucas gets to the table first, once again is sneaking some of his brothers food. He notices that he got caught and starts to put some from his bowl into his brothers. I put on an episode of Mickey Mouse Club House. They eat their snack and watch the show. During this time I am prepping dinner in the kitchen.
3:30 PM: I ask if they want to color, to which they answer yes. I have those Crayola pages where the markers are white until they touch paper. I take two pages out of the book and give each one marker. They have done it before but I show them how to put the marker on the paper. This kept their interest for about 25 minutes.
4:00 PM: While dad keeps their interest peaked, I sneak into the kitchen and start their dinner. Tonight's dinner will be english muffin pizzas, cottage cheese, cheese, raspberries, a pouch, and water. The boys normally eat separate from us since my husband gets home late from work and they go to bed early.
4:30 PM: We corral them into the kitchen for dinner. Both come running to the gate when they hear the high chairs being moved in. Dinner are a hit or miss lately, Archer won’t eat fruit while Luke hates the proteins. At least half of each dinner ends up on the floor. Luke is also pretty sneaky and will take from his brother’s plate what he wants when we aren’t looking, well he does it when we are looking too.
5:00 PM: Dinner is done! One of us gets the bath started, while the other starts to inspect the damage done to the kitchen. I pull one out of the chair at a time and strip them down, put them on the other side of the gate and tell them it’s bath time and to go find daddy. They one at a time get excited; start mumbling some baby talk about bath and run to the bathroom.
5:15 PM: My husband bathes them while I attempt to pick up the kitchen real quick and find pjs. He lets me know when they are done, I come in with a towel and ask who wants to get out, the obvious answer is no and they scoot as far back as they can.
5:20 PM: I grab Luke, wrap him up like a burrito and bring him to the changing pad. I have a night time diaper and pj’s waiting next to the pad. He really surprises me daily with his intelligence; he knows that I am going to put lotion on him. I put some in my hands and warm it up, he mimics me by rubbing his hands together, then starts giggling and patting his body. I then do the same and he laughs. About half way through this my husband comes and grabs the towel to get Archer out (we share around here, if you can share a womb, you can share a towel!) Then I put on his diaper and pjs.
5:25 PM: In comes Archer, I pick up Luke and we make our way back out to the living room with the comb, Archer then gets his 5 star treatment from dad.
5:30 PM: Archer gets his hair brushed by me, but insists on doing it himself. We then wind down our evening by reading a few books and playing before bed.
6:00 PM: It's bedtime, I announce to the boys that it is bedtime. They politely tell me no, but I win them over pretty quick and we all scurry off to their bedroom. They both go up to their cribs and one at a time I put them in. We say our goodnights, blow kisses, and say I love you. I close the door.
6:15 PM: Both are asleep. We have had a strong bedtime routine since 6 months old. I am glad I welcomed CIO into our lives. They have been sleeping through the night since 9 months and have been extremely easy to put to sleep for months now.
6:15 PM: I normally at this time go lay down in bed for 15 minutes to relax. It’s been a long day and I am exhausted.
6:30 PM: I get up and my husband and I eat dinner (ribs that had been cooking), then pick up the kitchen/living room. I let Roomba do her thing in the living room, while I sweep and mop the kitchen.
7:30 PM: We finally relax and watch some tv before bed, which for me will be 9 PM.
No comments:
Post a Comment